Home is where the plate isTaguchi's long journey never left the diamond

September 12, 2006|LORI SHONTZ St. Louis Post-Dispatch

ST. LOUIS -- So Taguchi was 13 years old when the Baltimore Orioles toured Japan, and he could not stop watching the televised games in the fall of 1984. Taguchi was impressed not only with the way the Orioles dominated the Japanese teams he usually watched, but also with one of their infielders, Lenn Sakata. Sakata's presence, Taguchi told himself, must mean that a Japanese player could find a home in major league baseball. And the major leagues, he could clearly see, featured the best baseball in the world. Therefore, Taguchi figured, one day he could play baseball with the world's best. No one told Taguchi that Sakata grew up in Hawaii. (He found out 20 years later.) And no one thought that wanting to play professional baseball anywhere -- let alone in the United States -- was a realistic goal for Taguchi. But Taguchi turned out to be a good enough player to enjoy a 10-year career in the Japanese League, winning five Gold Gloves. He grabbed the first chance he got to come to the United States. No matter that he was a 32-year-old outfielder, a player known more for his defense than his bat. No matter that he knew only a handful of English words. He was restless with the Orix BlueWave, and he hungered for something more. "If I am going to change something, I think it should not be a small change," Taguchi said, explaining his mind-set at the time. "I should change bigger." The changes turned out to be bigger and harder than Taguchi had expected. He signed with St. Louis, a city he couldn't locate on a map, in January 2002. He struggled to hit major league pitching, to communicate with teammates, to forge an American-style relationship with his manager. Plenty of observers figured that Taguchi would return to Japan. Four years later, Taguchi has made himself an integral part of the Cardinals. He plays all three outfield positions. He hits consistently. He hustles onto the field every inning, earning the respect of Cardinals fans. His smile is ever-present. "I think St. Louis is baseball heaven," Taguchi said. "I mean, heaven. You can have fun playing here. I look forward to coming to the ballpark every day." Choosing the Cardinals Taguchi's decision to relocate to the United States seemed to go against his entire personality. He went to college in his hometown. When he began playing professional baseball, he made his big move to a town 30 minutes away. He traveled farther with his teams, of course. The biggest road trip of all -- to the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney -- showed him that "the world is wide." He decided he wanted to be a part of it. Not just as a baseball player, but as a person. "If you live in a small space," said his wife, Emiko, "you do not know the world around you." Taguchi didn't simply leap into the unknown. As part of his post-Olympics soul searching, he peppered American ballplayers in Japan with questions. He asked each one which team would be best, and he said the answers were unanimous. "Everybody said 'Cardinals,"' Taguchi said. "The organization's good, the manager's good, the fans are the best in the world." Taguchi's preference was unusual. Most Asian players prefer to play for teams on the coasts, where there are sizable Asian communities. Taguchi said he never considered playing in Middle America a disadvantage, not for what he wanted to achieve. He wanted to immerse himself in American baseball, not just on the field, but off. "The dream is limited if they want to play only in San Francisco or New York," Emiko explained. "So, his dream was baseball. And if you really want to play in the U.S., you have to be like an American. You can't bring Japan to here." After making a trip to Arizona to work out for major league scouts in the winter of 2001, he and Emiko traveled to St. Louis. Their introduction to the city came on a cold, snowy day. "Everything felt like dark," he said. "The airport was dark. I went downtown with my wife, and it was cold and nobody was there. We were wondering, is it safe, or no?" But the experience didn't change his mind. Taguchi wanted a quintessential American baseball experience, and he decided that St. Louis was the place to have it. Embraced by the fans Taguchi signed a $3 million, three-year contract with the Cardinals and was introduced on January 9, 2002. He prepared a short speech in English for the press conference, and the fans embraced him, lining up for his autograph in such large numbers at the Cardinals Winter Warm-up that Emiko cried. His first several months in the United States, however, were a struggle. He couldn't speak English, so even the most basic details were sometimes lost to him. On his first day of spring training, he had no idea to which of the six fields he was expected to report. A translator assisted at first, but Taguchi found that didn't help much. "It took a long time," he said. "The coach would talk to the translator. I would talk to the translator. We didn't really see each other. It was no good." Taguchi found himself relying on his powers of observation. "I was always looking like the scary guy," he said, laughing and making his eyes go big and round. "I was always watching everybody." Worse, Taguchi didn't perform on the field. He hit .146 during spring training, and he was optioned to Class AAA Memphis at the end of March. His contract allowed him to return to Japan rather than being assigned to the minor leagues, and plenty of people expected -- perhaps even wanted -- him to leave. His decision to report to Memphis surprised some observers. Why would Taguchi stay in the United States, toiling in the minor leagues, when he could return to Japan and make more money? Simple, Taguchi said. "To give up is easy. If I wanted to go home, I could go home. But I say 'I give up' if I go home." Respecting his dream The situation was difficult for Emiko, too. The Taguchis already had rented an apartment in St. Louis, and they were unable to get out of the lease. So Emiko stayed there and commuted to Memphis. She was lonely, and her father was ill that summer. She kept a suitcase packed, ready to go home at any time. Instead, she found herself driving back and forth to Memphis. "I remember crossing that bridge between Arkansas and Memphis, and I said, 'God, how many times do I have to cross this bridge?"' Emiko said. She was careful, however, not to let her frustration show. She knew So had enough to deal with. "For me to complain," she said, "it would not respect his dream." Instead, she worked to help him, both by helping him adjust to a new culture and by providing reminders of home. She became close friends with Ashley Joseph, whose husband, Kevin, pitched for the Redbirds. Ashley Joseph helped Emiko master English idioms, and she marveled at how Emiko helped her husband. "She was into his career, how he was doing, more than most of the wives," Joseph said. "Most of us do a lot more talking during the game, but she was always locked in and focused. If he was at bat, she knew. She knew what his stats were, how he was swinging, how he was playing. Did he play well in the field that night, make any mistakes? She was very on top of it."